


First Touch

by ItFlare



Series: What Happens After (and Sometimes Before) [1]
Category: Yu-Gi-Oh!
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Pharaoh Lives, Post-Canon, Puzzleshipping
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-02
Updated: 2018-06-02
Packaged: 2019-05-17 06:00:36
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,244
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14826689
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ItFlare/pseuds/ItFlare
Summary: Their first touch is gentle, barely there.A ghost of a caress with far more meaning than young Yugi Mutou’s quaking heart could ever begin to describe. With shaky knees and all too wide eyes he slowly reaches towards his sun.





	First Touch

Their first touch is gentle, barely there. 

A ghost of a caress with far more meaning than young Yugi Mutou’s quaking heart could ever begin to describe. With shaky knees and all too wide eyes he slowly reaches towards tanned fingers. 

At first contact, he gasps. Making an audible noise he barely hears over the staccato drum beat of his heart. Small fingers flinch backwards instantly, fearful as hope builds in an innocent heart.

His pharoah closes the distance between them, fingers finding their way between his benevolent charges and folding inwards as their palms connect. Atem lets out a breath he had not known he’d been holding. Free and warm, both words he could now use to describe his non corporeal self. His body now filled with life.

Yugi’s mouth falls open, chin trembling with feelings. Violet eyes make their way up towards their sun, finally connecting with bleeding red. Yugi breathes, shuddering in disbelief, eyes filling with long held tears. In an instant his knees give out, palms still firmly clasped with the pharaohs. Atem kneels down with a quiet utterance of the younger mans name then all at once the building begins to shake. 

Yugi doesn’t remember much beyond the sudden tug on the back of his shirt that yanks him off the ground, propelling him forward on stupefied legs that seem to run on their own.

He’s left in the back, his short stature be damned, with the Pharaoh running up quickly from behind, shoving him forward as meticulously crafted chunks of limestone fall around them. He suddenly comes to as his back hits the dry desert sand and the sun shines high above them. A cloud of sand abstructs his view, forcing his eyes to burn and shut. When he opens them the dust has cleared, the roaring from the collapsing tomb finally silent. Above him he sees the sun, his pharoah looking down at him. With tanned skin and whine red eyes Atem’s face shows nothing but concern for his young partner until alabaster hands rise to cup his slender cheeks. A sudden cry bursts through the fear and disbelief that filled Yugi’s chest. The younger man sobs loudly as tears stream down his dirty cheeks. 

“You..” Yugi cries, loudly hiccuping “..Your here.”

Pharoah smiles, one hand moving to join his partners. His eyes grow misty at the younger man's reaction and he presses Yugi’s hand down against his cheek. 

“I am.” Atem, murmurs, voice quiet and filled with emotion. 

Yugi sucks in a breath, almost choking on it. His repeating hiccups and cries keep him from speaking any further. 

No one else dares to speak. 

Joey looks to Tristan, as Tea stays on her knees in the burning sand. They stare on in disbelief, the only sound penetrating the deserts silence comes from the crying pair in front of them. Yugi coughs, gasping for air between sobs. Atem hushes him, holding the younger man in his arms.

It's unreal. Of all the things the group had seen the sight in front of them is the most unbelievable.

\--

They stay in Egypt for almost a week. 

As they leave the desert sands, Yugi takes the pharaohs hand and never lets go.

\--

Before leaving, Yugi phones his grandpa. His hands tremble against the receiver. When Solomon Mutou answers, Yugi’s breathing stills for a moment, unable to conjure up an appropriate greeting after all that has happened.

“Hello? Yugi?” the aged voice calls out. Yugi smiles at the familiarity. He tells his grandpa that he’s fine (so much more than fine) and they had accomplished all that they had set out to do, that he could finally come home and stay there without worry of any sudden unearthly calamities or a sudden demise. He tells him that he’ll be bringing home a friend, someone familiar, important, that may need to stay with them a while, forever. 

The pause that follows puts a sinking feeling in Yugi's chest. Atem stands close behind him slowly running his knuckles up and down the curve of Yugi’s spine.

“Do I know him?” Solomon asks, and Yugi smiles, cheeks darkening to a healthy red. Atem lets out an amused huff through his nose. 

“Well.. Sort of.. You kinda do, Grampa. You’ll understand when you see him.”

Grandpa hums into the receiver, a quiet scraping noise tells Yugi that the older man is scratching at his beard. “I guess you’ll have to explain it when you get here.” 

Yugi lets out a sigh of relief, free hand now being held by Atem’s larger one and thanks his grandpa profusely. They exchange a few more words after Yugi promises to fill the older man in before saying their goodbyes. As the handheld piece is put back into place on the dock Atem wraps his arms around his former vessel, causing the younger man to lean back into the embrace. Yugi releases one last tension filled breath before turning and wrapping pale arms around sun kissed skin. It's tender and wonderful. The moment is perfect, finally. 

\--

The boat ride home is mostly uneventful. Everyone seemed to see both the Pharaohs and Yugi’s need for space and do their best to steer clear when necessary. Tristan and Joey argue quietly over “How far” their two friends had gone with one another and place bets over who will say those three little words first. Tea rolls her eyes, pushing them along before they have time to meddle, disbelief still clear in her heart. Everyone knew that Atem and Yugi had a grown close over the years but no one had predicted the now visible intimacy, or that they would ever be coming home with the Pharaoh, flesh and all.

Kaiba rolled his eyes at their antics, Mokuba joining in his brothers outward annoyance. Seto mainly kept to himself, saying a few words to Atem and Yugi when need be and quietly doting over his little brother from afar.

The Ishtars stood in reverence whenever their Pharoah stood near. The three siblings remained loyal to Atem without fault, using their money and vast number of connections to forge all of the paperwork Atem would need to begin his new life. 

After the sun sets on one of their final nights aboard the Ishtar’s ship, everyone returns to their shared cabins, except Yugi and his Pharoah. The pair strays out into the hall after their roomate Joey is fast asleep. They quietly pass by each cabin, seeing each of their friends deep asleep through the windows on their door. The only one still awake is the elder Kaiba brother, sitting up in bed with his laptop placed in his lap and one hand laying atop Mokuba’s head, fingers slowly carding through ebony blue locks. 

Atem gives a formal nod when they make eye contact before passing bye. 

The pair climbs the stairs leading to the top deck hands in hand. The moon shines from high above, beaming down at them and bathing them in an ethereal light that reflects off of Yugi’s deep purple eyes in a way that almost makes them glow. Atem stops, short of breath, heart filled with what could only be described with words far too deep and meaningful for someone so void of air. Yugi smiles up at his sun, eyes full of admiration and warmth. Everything is beautiful and for the first time in what feels like forever, Yugi thinks everything is going to be alright.

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, all!
> 
> I haven't been okay enough to write anything in over a year, sadly. I feel horrible about it and I hate that I left Feral Soldier the way I did. But maybe now that college is officially over for me I can finally be creative now and I'll have time to do things other than animate???? The thought is wild. 
> 
> I decided to watch the old Yu-Gi-Oh! series for nostalgias sake and now I'm obsessed!! ALSO LITTLE ME NEVER SAW HOW FUCKING GAY THIS SHOW IS???? BUT HOW???
> 
> Basically now I'm stuck reading puzzleshipping, Flareshipping and Rivalshipping fics until I start my internship soon :'). If you have any good fit recs please feel free to share!!!


End file.
